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Saturn Occultation Seen for First Time in 22 Years

Saturn Occultation Seen for First Time in 22 Years

TOKYO - The rare celestial event known as Saturn occultation, where Saturn hides behind the Moon, was visible Sunday night for the first time in 22 and a half years under conditions minimally affected by sunlight or moonlight.

While some areas of Japan did not experience the phenomenon, in the Kanto region, observers witnessed Saturn disappearing behind the Moon's "12 o'clock" position and reemerging at the "3 o'clock" position. The event was successfully photographed in remarkable detail, even capturing Saturn's rings.

Source: TBS

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Typhoon No. 25 was closing in on the Kanto region on September 21 while maintaining strong intensity, with the large storm estimated at 2 p.m. to be passing through the southern Izu Islands between Hachijojima and Miyakejima and moving northeast at 25 kilometers per hour, raising the risk of record rainfall and disaster-level winds across Kanto and the Izu Islands as leisure and commercial facilities temporarily closed in preparation for worsening conditions.

Transport disruption across eastern Japan intensified through the afternoon of September 21 as large and strong Typhoon No. 25 approached Kanto, with at least 275 ANA and Japan Airlines flights canceled, more than 100 cancellations at Narita Airport, conventional rail services suspended across parts of Kanagawa and Chiba prefectures, and extensive expressway closures affecting routes around Tokyo and the Boso Peninsula.

People aged 65 and older accounted for a record 29.6% of Japan's population in 2026, the highest proportion among major countries worldwide, while the number of elderly people in employment also reached an all-time high as Japan marked Respect for the Aged Day on September 21.

Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako watched Japan defeat Kazakhstan in a women’s basketball preliminary-round game at the 20th Asian Games in Nagoya.

A drone filming the illuminated Nagoya City Hall headquarters crashed into a building across the road shortly before 9 p.m. on September 17, with police investigating whether the flight may have violated Japan's Civil Aeronautics Act.

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